April 26, 2008

(After much thought, I've decided that, much like my previous efforts on The Prisoner, I'm going to do a weekly review/recap of Doctor Who season four debut. As always this will be a spoiler-free review)

When I first saw the previews for The Fires of Pompeii, I have to admit, I had a slightly snarky attitude, and thought to myself, "You know, I think I liked this episode better when it was The Shakespeare Code".

Of course, thankfully, I actually watched the entire episode, and I have to say that, production value and script wise, it's one of the best episodes Doctor Who has done - in fact, the script is surprising in that it's the beginning of (what I am speculating) to be the most in-depth exploration of the Doctor's morality.

It begins with the Doctor and Donna arriving in Pompeii in 79 AD, just before the major eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Even within the pre-credits trailer are some clever touches - a slightly witty attempt at speaking Latin within the TARDIS' "telepathic circuits"; some sly references to paststories; and the beginning of exploring why the Doctor can interfere in some circumstances rather than others.

However, the script takes an interesting turn - it does become a treatise on the ethics of changing history...but more importantly, it soon becomes a great meditation on foreseeing the future. The rights of one species versus another. In short, despite its talk of the Doctor knowing about "fixed points in history" - as well as a hinted at sense that, as a Time Lord, he has a unique perception of time - it becomes not just a cliche, but a real exploration of the Doctor's ethics.

I also have to admit that this is a personal favorite because it hit on my two teenage obsessions: Doctor Who and Roman history. From the mentions of household gods to the use of soothsayers...this is a script that I probably would have attempted to write as a teenager but failed miserably. It's an indication that series four may be the best, most tightly written season of DW since its reboot in 2005.

No spoilers, but some final thoughts: the main plot eventually reminds a viewer of a quote from the past Christmas special, and the last shot seems almost chilling in its implications.